Karnataka records 1st ‘Sandalwood Leopard’: Ultra-rare strawberry-coloured big cat previously seen only in Rajasthan | Bengaluru News
BENGALURU: Karnataka’s rich wildlife has drawn fresh international attention with the documentation of an ultra-rare leopard colour morph in Vijayanagara district, marking only the second such sighting in India and the first in the state. Conservationists have named the big cat “Sandalwood Leopard”, inspired by its distinctive pale reddish-pink coat resembling the colour of sandalwood, marked with light-brown rosettes. The discovery underscores the remarkable diversity of Karnataka’s leopard population, which already supports one of the country’s highest concentrations of melanistic leopards, commonly known as black panthers. The rare animal was recorded by conservation scientist Sanjay Gubbi of the Holematthi Nature Foundation (HNF) and his team during an ongoing study on leopard diversity across the state. “Typically, leopards (Panthera pardus) have tawny coats with black rosettes. This individual, however, has a pale reddish-pink coat, likely due to a genetic condition involving either excess red pigmentation or reduced dark pigmentation,” Gubbi said. Internationally, such animals are referred to as “strawberry leopards”. Previously it’s spotted at Rajasthan in Nov 2021 Globally, this colour morph has been documented only five times – twice in South Africa, once in Tanzania, and twice in India. The only previous Indian record was from Rajasthan’s Ranakpur region in Pali district in Nov 2021. “We wanted to give this leopard a name rooted in Karnataka’s cultural and ecological identity, and sandalwood is deeply associated with the state’s forests,” Gubbi added.According to the HNF team, the leopard is a female, estimated to be about seven years old, and was photographed using camera traps. One image also captured her with a cub displaying a normal tawny coat with black rosettes. Researchers said the animal’s appearance is consistent with naturally occurring genetic traits such as hypomelanism or erythrism.However, they cautioned that the current assessment is based solely on visual and photographic evidence. Definitive identification of the underlying genetic mechanism would require molecular analysis, using non-invasive DNA samples such as scat or hair. Until then, scientists say it is most accurate to describe the animal as a rare colour morph.The research team includes Sandesh Appu Naik, Shravan Suthar, Poornesha HC, Ruma Kundarkar, Ravichandra Velip, Dayanand Mirashi, Sumit Velip, Aishwarya Karanth and Mayur Mirashi.
